Volkswagen Polo 2018 Review

The best got better

Balance, equilibrium and symmetry occur easily and effortlessly in nature… but for a mechanical construct? It's a challenge, a big challenge.

Unless your name is Mr V.W. Polo.

After driving the new Volkswagen Polo in Australia for the first time – across a variety of roads including a rutted, pock-marked and deliciously decrepit road in the Adelaide hills – it's fair to say this car will be a tough act to follow.

The latest Polo's driving balance is almost perfect. It's rarely troubled by changing conditions, blending ride comfort, road-holding and cornering dynamics to great effect.

Based on Volkswagen's latest MQB platform, which also underpins the Golf hatch, Tiguan SUV and even the Arteon flagship sedan, the new Polo is also bigger, smarter and better equipped than ever before.

But first, let's recap the 2018 Volkswagen Polo pricing (plus on-road costs):

70TSI Trendline manual – $17,990
70TSI Trendline auto – $20,490
85TSI Comfortline manual – $19,490
85TSI Comfortline auto – $21,990
85TSI Launch Edition manual – $20,490
85TSI Launch Edition auto – $22,990

Metallic/pearl-effect paint – $500
Driver Assistance package – $1400

As you can see, the entry-level Polo’s price is higher than that of the Holden Barina ($14,990), Toyota Yaris ($15,390) and Mazda2 ($14,990), but the standard equipment list is commensurate to its price premium.

All models come standard with power windows, tyre pressure monitoring, LED driving lights and a leather-clad steering wheel festooned with buttons – including voice control and cruise control.

You can even get radar cruise control in the 'Driver Assist' option pack ($1400), which also adds a slow-speed automatic reversing brake that kicks in below 10km/h. It's designed to stop you running into bollards or other cars when reverse or parallel parking. Hands up who's done that!

One of the most impressive features of the new Polo is a large, tastefully-integrated 8.0-inch touch-screen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto fitted as standard across the range.

It's a sleek unit that provides an especially clear view from the reversing camera (also standard) and elevates the Polo's interior aesthetics to almost premium levels. A six-speaker stereo is also fitted, with CD player and SD card slot.

There are two USB ports tucked away under the 1980s temperature controls (detracting slightly from the otherwise primo cabin), meaniong there won't be any arguments over who gets to charge their smartphone.

You can actually charge three phones simultaneously, thanks to the option of an inductive (wireless) phone charger too.

Class-leading safety

Autonomous emergency braking (AEB) works at low and high speeds and is standard across the range and even brings pedestrian detection. Only one of its Asian rivals offers any sort of AEB as standard – the Mazda2. Volkswagen's budget brand Skoda also offers AEB in the Fabia, while a driver fatigue system is also fitted to all Polo models.

Six airbags, anti-lock brakes, stability control and a hill-start assist feature are also fitted on all models, as are auto-locking doors -- a nice safety blanket of sorts.

Trendline models come standard with a five-speed manual, Comfortlines get a six-speed manual and both are optional with a seven-speed auto for $2500.

The flip-side of the expensive auto is that it's one of the best dual-clutch jobbies in the biz.

The dual-clutch tranny has lightning-quick gear shifts that keep the tiny turbo engines on boost when you're in a hurry, and operates quietly and smoothly in the background when tootling around.

Speaking of engine, there's a choice of two rather charming three-cylinder 1.0-litre turbo-petrol units that generate more power than the Polo's previous engines while also sipping a bit less fuel.

Between 4.8 and 5.1L/100km is the claim. The reality was 6.0 and 6.3L/100km on the launch drive, which is still pretty frugal.

After crawling around inside and poking and prodding the new Polo then pumping it up hills and away from traffic lights, it's clear the German brand has improved upon an already tasty recipe.

Granted, it's more expensive than its Japanese rivals but the new Polo feels a step ahead of the compact car pack, especially where standard safety features and levels of refinement are concerned.

Moving and grooving

Moving to the MQB platform brings lots of advantages to the Polo, such as the new safety and infotainment updates listed above, but also more room.

It's now significantly bigger, with an extra 25 per cent boot space, rated at 351 litres (up 71 litres). This is expandable to 1125 litres with the 60:40-split rear seats folded. These are easy to flip from the boot or back seat with just one hand.

Rear seat room is surprisingly good – this six-foot author was comfortable back there – and the front cloth seats are par for the course; neither outstanding nor terrible.

Although the car is now longer and wider (but slightly lower), its weight is virtually unchanged at between 1111kg and 1152kg. Together with updated suspension, this makes Volkswagen's city-car feel light on its feet.

Indeed, when it comes to driving dynamics, the Polo is like that smarmy kid at school you secretly hate and begrudgingly respect – top of the class.

On gently winding country roads in the Adelaide hills, the entry-level car carves up corners with ease. It sits flatter through bends than its predecessor, which means you can corner with more confidence (and speed if you wish) but there's a level of suppleness in the ride quality that makes this a balanced all-rounder.

Even when rifling up those aforementioned bumpy, uneven, craggy roads, the Polo absorbs all but the biggest of pot holes, navigating dodgy roads with ease. I cannot wait to sample the new Polo GTI.

It's an energetic, fun car to drive and its default response to heavy-handedness is predictable understeer. On less exciting roads and around the city of Adelaide the Polo was smooth, easy-going and surprisingly quiet.

Even in the entry-level $17,990 Polo Trendline with steel wheels and a five-speed manual, the 1.0-litre turbo-petrol triple (70kW/175Nm) acquits itself well.

It needs a bit of moxie off the line in first gear to keep up with traffic in the manual – once resulting in wheelspin, booyah! – but there's more than enough pepper for most situations.

Drop $2500 on the seven-speed DSG auto and it makes getaways a lot easier with the warbly 1.0-litre three-pot, but foot-to-the-floor it doesn't feel as fleet as the manual. In fact, it feels pretty sluggish.

Step up to the $21,990 Polo Comfortline auto and the extra herbs (85kW/200Nm) make a world of difference. The car is sportier, spritelier and faster, the auto snapping between gears so quickly it keeps the turbocharger on boost.

Both engines are remarkably smooth, very tractable and will happily sit on 1500rpm, but the extra oomph means overtaking at freeway speeds is a little nippier, as is launching from traffic lights.

Neither engine is coarse like some inline three-cylinder motors and, in general, the driving experience is calm and quiet.

Both engines require 95 RON premium petrol and are eminently frugal, although the claimed 4.8L/100km and 5.0L/100km economy numbers for those pairings seems a bit optimistic compared to my figures of 6.0 and 6.3L/100km.

What you don't get

Top-spec Polo Comfortline models get a central armrest, automatic headlights and wipers, self-dimming interior mirror and alloy wheels, while the entry-level Trendline models do not.

The $1400 driver assistance package is not available on the Trendline Polo either, which is a shame.

There's also a limited-run Volkswagen Polo Launch Edition, which costs another $1000 on top of the Comfortline model at $22,990 for the auto.

The extra thousand bucks adds tinted windows, LED brake lights, bigger 16-inch alloy wheels and wireless phone charging.

However, if you want climate-control, look elsewhere. Electric seats or native satellite-navigation? Not here either, and some of the interior plastics look and feel pretty cheap. There's also no diesel option… which isn't really surprising.

The 2018 Polo only has a three-year warranty, which is below average compared to many of its rivals with five-year and even seven-year durations. But beyond that and the requirement for premium fuel, there's not a lot to gripe about with this German-engineered hatch.

The Polo has been a quiet achiever for Volkswagen since its introduction in 1975, selling an impressive 14 million vehicles. It's been on sale in Australia for the last two decades and the new model is hard to fault.

Now, with an extensive standard equipment list, advanced safety systems, fuel-efficient engines and one of the best automatic gearboxes in the business, it's on track for more success.

It's not the cheapest car in the light-car class, but it's certainly one of the best value.

2018 Volkswagen Polo Comfortline pricing and specifications:
Price: $21,990 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 1.0-litre three-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 85kW/200Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel: 6.3L/100km (as tested)
CO2: 115g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star ANCAP (2017 rated)